About freaking time...

American Airlines has internet!

For $12.95, passengers on AA flights using its Boeing 767-200 will be able to surf the Net, check e-mail, instant message and access corporate VPN accounts using the system by Aircell LLC.

The ground-based system – called GoGo – won't enable any voice-based functions.

American says it will test GoGo on its fleet of 15 767-200s, which are used primarily on transcontinental flights, for three to six months.

Assuming everything goes well, the carrier may expand to the rest of its fleet.

American allowed passengers on a handful of flights test the system on June 25 and Aug. 13.

Rival Delta Air Lines Inc. announced earlier this month that it will install the system on its fleet of 133 MD-88/90 aircraft this fall and plans to offer it across its 330 mainline domestic fleet by mid-2009.

Several other carriers are testing in-flight connectivity. Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co. plans to test a satellite system by Row 44 Inc. next month.
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"It's a game-changer," Mr. Harteveldt said. "You're no longer forced to be isolated from what's going on in your office, with your clients or with friends or family. For business travelers, this will greatly aid productivity, and for leisure travelers, it means they will be in control of their entertainment."

In-flight connectivity will also be a key driver as airlines compete for business.

"Live TV is great for now, but the Internet is what people want for the future," Mr. Harteveldt said. "Airlines that don't offer Internet access are going to lose business."

In-flight broadband is expected to generate $6.6 million in passenger revenue this year, according to a June report by MultiMedia Intelligence.

The research firm estimates the industry will skyrocket to $936 million revenue by 2012.

The real question is....how soon until someone is in trouble for surfing porn?
Seriously, I've always wondered why they didn't do this sooner. The simple fact is that they don't have the space on the planes, especially on AA fleet of MD80's to have this. As the article says, I'd be shocked that in 10 years every flight didn't have highspeed internet.